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Fla.’s housing market shows rising prices in Feb.

ORLANDO, Fla. – March 20, 2014 – Florida’s housing market reported higher median prices, more new listings, fewer days on the market and a stable level of inventory in February, according to the latest housing data released by Florida Realtors®. Closed sales of single-family homes statewide totaled 15,826 last month, up 1.5 percent over the February 2013 figure.

“With a diminishing number of distressed properties listed for sale, the return of more traditional housing market conditions continues to spark sellers’ interest,” said 2014 Florida Realtors President Sherri Meadows, CEO and team leader, Keller Williams, with market centers in Gainesville, Ocala and The Villages. “Statewide, new listings for single-family homes in February rose 11.6 percent year-over-year, while new townhouse-condo listings rose 4.2 percent.

“And last month’s statewide data showed rising median sales prices for both single-family homes and townhome-condo properties, year-over-year – for the 27th month in a row.”

The statewide median sales price for single-family existing homes last month was $165,000, up 10 percent from the previous year, according to data from Florida Realtors Industry Data and Analysis department in partnership with local Realtor boards/associations. The statewide median price for townhouse-condo properties in February was $132,500, up 15.2 percent over the year-ago figure. The median is the midpoint; half the homes sold for more, half for less.

According to the National Association of Realtors® (NAR), the national median sales price for existing single-family homes in January 2014 was $188,900, up 10.4 percent from the previous year; the national median existing condo price was $188,700. In California, the statewide median sales price for single-family existing homes in January was $410,990; in Massachusetts, it was $320,000; in New York, it was $238,500; and in Maryland, it was $235,872.

“The majority of results for the residential market paint a picture of a normal growing market,” said Florida Realtors Chief Economist Dr. John Tuccillo. “The weaker results in sales for both single-family homes and townhouses and condos are solely the result of plummeting short sales. This is actually a good sign since short sales are falling because prices are rising, reducing the number of homes that fall into the potential short sales category.”

Inventory was at a 5.7-months’ supply last month for single-family homes and at a 6.1-months’ supply for townhouse-condo properties, according to Florida Realtors.

According to Freddie Mac, the interest rate for a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage averaged 4.30 percent in February 2014, up from the 3.53 percent average recorded during the same month a year earlier.